Jennison Associates LLC Sells 152,286 Shares of Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO)

Jennison Associates LLC lessened its stake in shares of Moody’s Co. (NYSE:MCO) by 6.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,180,977 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 152,286 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 1.20% of Moody’s worth $1,032,409,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MCO. Planning Capital Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Moody’s by 566.7% during the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 60 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Moody’s by 272.2% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Moody’s during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Asset Dedication LLC raised its position in shares of Moody’s by 83.0% during the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 86 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Moody’s in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. 92.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Moody’s

In related news, CEO Robert Fauber sold 281 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $478.99, for a total transaction of $134,596.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 61,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,387,952.46. This trade represents a 0.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 843 shares of company stock valued at $401,119. Insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Moody’s Stock Performance

Moody’s stock opened at $499.49 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The company has a market capitalization of $90.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.62, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.31. Moody’s Co. has a twelve month low of $360.05 and a twelve month high of $505.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $483.06 and its 200 day moving average is $474.82.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on MCO. Citigroup initiated coverage on Moody’s in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $565.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Moody’s from $454.00 to $459.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Moody’s from $510.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Moody’s from $543.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Moody’s from $468.00 to $481.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Moody’s has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $507.36.

About Moody’s

Moody’s Corporation operates as an integrated risk assessment firm worldwide. It operates in two segments, Moody’s Analytics and Moody’s Investors Services. The Moody’s Analytics segment develops a range of products and services that support the risk management activities of institutional participants in financial markets.